White House, Republicans Tangle Over CFPB

WASHINGTON – With House Republicans planning to bring up legislation targeting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau this week, the White House Monday launched a pre-emptive attack, saying it was a waste of time given the pressing need to raise the debt ceiling.

White House spokesmanJay Carney opened his Monday briefing with reporters by taking aim at the measure, sponsored by Rep. Sean Duffy (R., Wis.), that would allow other federal financial regulators to delay or quash rules issued by the CFPB, the federal consumer watchdog created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

The measure is one of only a handful of items House GOP leaders have formally scheduled for debate this week. Strategically, this week’s action gives the House an issue to debate while Republican leaders finalize their strategy for raising the nation’s borrowing limit. The House Republican conference is slated to meet Monday evening to feel out their rank-and-file members on a possible package of policy options.

“Instead of ensuring that our bills are paid and obligations met and that we do not default, and instead of helping achieve opportunity for all Americans by extending emergency unemployment insurance or by raising the minimum wage … this week, House Republicans are trying to move a bill that would weaken the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” he said, noting that President Barack Obama would veto the measure if it reaches his desk.

The measure is part of a broader GOP effort to inhibit or otherwise curtail the authority of the CFPB, which Republicans say is an unaccountable bureaucracy that restricts consumers’ credit choices and hurts banks by subjecting them to new regulations. Since the CFPB was created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank law, Republicans have tried to weaken the authority of its director and rein in its authority. The legislation is not expected to get traction in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

About Washington Wire

Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.